OpenTEAM FAQ

OpenTEAM, or Open Technology Ecosystem for Agricultural Management, is a network of public and private partners that collaboratively develop and maintain an ecosystem of tools and networks utilizing low cost, open sourceOpen source is a publicly accessible software design that can be modified and shared by multiple users. This allows the source code to be inspected and enhanced by anyone. Because open source utilizes multiple collaborators, it allows for more control, increased security and stab… technologies to link producers, researchers, businesses, and the public enabling the exchange of agricultural information and inspiration across geographies, production systems, and cultural boundaries.

We endorse the following statements:

• Agriculture is a shared human endeavor and we have a shared interest in providing everyone the best possible, site-specific, and  data-driven agricultural knowledge
• Agriculture is a public science, where we will collectively benefit by creating a pre-competitivePre-competitive collaboration utilizes a collective approach to bring together a diverse group of stakeholders to create new technologies and solutions benefiting a shared industry. Diverse efforts can be streamlined into solving systematic problems utilizing multiple industry pe… space to more rapidly advance our shared understanding of food systems, agroecosystems, climate science, and relationships between soil health,  and human health. (read more)
• A shared urgency exists in taking action to improve soil health globally and support continual improvement of ecosystem service delivery from farm and ranchland
• The majority of benefit and natural wealth creation should flow to those most directly engaged in the transformation of natural systems.   
• Knowledge is co-created, and user-generated data should be shared as opt-in and controlled by those who created it.  
• Pre-competitive contributions to OpenTEAM from each member will help pool knowledge, resources and capabilities in order to speed up the systemic challenges of farmer resiliency and ag data interoperabilityInteroperability is a characteristic of a product or system whose interfaces are completely understood to work with other products or systems, at present or in the future, in implementation or access, and without any restrictions. While the term was initially defined for informat… we seek to solve.

OpenTEAM is made up of a vast community of producers, researchers, businesses, and organizations. HubsOpenTEAM Hubs will serve as a primary testing ground for the OpenTEAM platform, and their experience and feedback will inform OpenTEAM’s user interface design and calibration of the tools that are part of the OpenTEAM platform. Hubs are a center for a representative group of fa… and network members make up the backbone of OpenTEAM. These farms and ranches will provide the social and technical infrastructure encompassing representative regional production systems in the U.S. to scale adoption of soil health management practices. Hubs will be the primary locations for field testing OpenTEAM, and once the platform is ready for wider release, they will serve as ambassadors to help build the on-farm user network. Network members will also play an integral role in testing the technology and platform as it is developed, but will have a more informal role in platform development with fewer reporting requirements.  

• A shared agtech toolkit for farmers, field technicians, agronomists and other trusted advisors
• Rapid and low-cost in-field assessment tools
• Greater farmer control over their data
• Data portability to value-added incentives (certification, conservation payment, ecosystem service credit)
• Peer-to-peer learning through digital coffee shop model
• Engagement with a network of researchers and farmers that are actively learning about what practices work, and where, and how best to monitor their outcomes
• A way to measure conservation practice effectiveness

Applications will open this fall for Hubs and Network Farms and Ranch members. If interested in becoming a Hub or Network farm and ranch, please let us know through this link!

OpenTEAM is structured into four distinct working groups. 

• The Field Methods Working Group aims to bridge science with the available tools to create a versioned and flexible, tiered approach to field methods protocols that will support the needs of farmers/ranchers, researchers and markets. 
• The Hub and Network Working Group brings together representatives of participating Hubs and Network farms and ranches with the researchers, developers and companies involved in OpenTEAM in order to facilitate communication across these communities of practice and ensure that Hub and Network members have access to the information and technical resources they need regarding their participation in OpenTEAM. 
• The Human Centered DesignHuman-centered design is a design and management framework that develops solutions to problems by involving the human perspective in all steps of the problem-solving process. Human-centered design builds upon participatory action research by moving beyond participants’ involvemen… Working Group focuses on creating internal and external social feedback and design processes for the OpenTEAM community.
• The Technology Working Group identifies opportunities for co-development, prioritizes them into work packages, and builds the necessary elements to support the interoperability of various technological tools within the OpenTEAM community.

Visit the OpenTEAM Community page to see the profiles of the technology organizations that are within OpenTEAM. This page will continue to be built out, adding in profiles of Hubs.

OpenTEAM employs a number of in-field measurement tools, as well as economic and decision support toolsThe terms Decision Support Tools or Decision Support Systems (DSS) refer to a wide range of computer-based tools (simulation models, and/or techniques and methods) developed to support decision analysis and participatory processes. A DSS consists of a database and different tools…. Specifically, OpenTEAM utilizes FarmOSA free and open-source web-based farm management and record keeping system that also provides a platform for the creation of custom modules and integration across decision tools, observation tools and agricultural internet of things devices., Our-Sci’s Survey Stack, the Land Potential Knowledge System (LandPKSThe Land-Potential Knowledge System (LandPKS) is a simple free and open source software tool and mobile application developed by USDA/ARS that supports land use planning and management. It includes modules that allow non-soil scientists to (a) determine the sustainable potential …), Quick CarbonQuick Carbon is a growing academic research initiative and protocol for rapidly assessing soil carbon contents across landscapes. Quick Carbon creates an accessible measurement system that empowers individuals to generate reliable soils carbon data for the purpose of ecological u…, and OpTIS to enable location specific data on soil, climate, vegetation cover, and topography alongside observational and management records. COMET-FarmThe COMET tools are the official greenhouse gas quantification tools sanctioned by the USDA. COMET-Farm and COMET-Planner, and earlier versions of COMET, were developed through a partnership between NRCS, the USDA Climate Change Program Office (CCPO) and the Natural Resource Ecol… and Cool Farm ToolThe Cool Farm Tool is an online calculator that enables farmers to measure their greenhouse gas emissions, and understand mitigation options for agricultural production. Originally initiated by Unilever, the CFT greenhouse gas emissions calculator is based on empirical research f… are used to quantify on-farm greenhouse gas emissions.

An in depth look into our field methods can be found here.

FarmOS is a web-based application for farm management, planning, and record keeping. It is developed by a community of farmers, developers, researchers, and organizations with the aim of providing a standard, open source platform for agricultural data collection and management. OpenTEAM hubs will be using FarmOS to manage production records and agricultural research data.

Our-Sci is a collaborative research platform that utilizes open source tools to create customizable surveys, collect data, and report and share results. Our-Sci’s expertise and knowledge on agricultural systems is vital to OpenTEAM’s operating systems. OpenTEAM is utilizing Our-Sci’s SurveyStack application as a customizable data collection tool to create surveys that can be directly integrated into FarmOS. 

Land-Potential Knowledge System (LandPKS) is a simple free and open source software tool and mobile application developed by USDA/ARS that supports land use planning and management. It includes modulesA component or module is a discrete portion of a tool that has a particular function. Components can be assembled in different combinations to create hacks or tools. The larger the library of components, the more “genetic” diversity to choose from when creating new tools or h… that allow non-soil scientists to (a) determine the sustainable potential of their land (LandInfo), (b) monitor the health of their land (LandCover and SoilHealth), and (c) record management activities (LandManagement). The land potential assessments will be updated based on new evidence regarding the success or failure of new management systems on different soils. The knowledge engine, together with mobile phone applications and cloud computing technologies, facilitate more rapid and complete integrationSystem integration is defined in engineering as the process of bringing together the component subsystems into one system (an aggregation of subsystems cooperating so that the system is able to deliver the overarching functionality) and ensuring that the subsystems function toget… of local and scientific knowledge into land management.

Quick Carbon is a growing academic research initiative and protocol for rapidly assessing soil carbon contents across landscapes. Quick carbon creates an accessible measurement system that empowers individuals to generate reliable soils carbon data for the purpose of ecological understanding, decision making, and markets. By providing an inexpensive avenue for measuring soil carbon contents, Quick Carbon allows for researchers to collect hundreds of measurements across landscapes.

COMET is the official greenhouse gas quantification tool of USDA. COMET-Farm, and earlier versions of COMET, was developed through a partnership between NRCS and Colorado State University. COMET-Farm uses information on management practices on an operation together with spatially-explicit information on climate and soil conditions from USDA databases (which are provided automatically in the tool) to run a series of models that evaluate sources of greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration. By integrating NRCS SSURGO database and site-specific climate data, locality-specific results are presented to COMET-Farm users.

The Cool Farm Tool is an online calculator that enables farmers to measure their greenhouse gas emissions, and understand mitigation options for agricultural production. Originally initiated by Unilever. The CFT greenhouse gas emissions calculator is based on empirical research from a broad range of published data sets and IPCC methods. The tool calculates emissions estimates from: • N2O emissions based on an empirical model built from an analysis of over 800 global datasets. These datasets refine IPCC Tier 1 estimates of N2O emission by factoring in the guiding drivers of N2O emissions such as rate of N applied, soil texture, soil carbon, moisture and soil pH.

Dagan, a spin-off of Applied GeoSolutions, has developed a system for operational mapping of tillage practices and cover crops over wide areas. The Operational Tillage Information System, or OpTIS, produces spatially comprehensive maps of crop residue cover and cover crops annually using information integrated from multiple earth-observing satellites. Accurate, timely, and spatially comprehensive information about the dynamic state of tillage practices and cover crops across large regions is valuable for several purposes.

Open source is a publicly accessible software design that can be modified and shared by multiple users. This allows the source code to be inspected and enhanced by anyone. Because open source utilizes multiple collaborators, it allows for more control, increased security and stability, additional training opportunities, and the foundation of communities centered around software design. The open source approachThe open source approach encompasses a more broad set of values and principles derived from open source software development. Open source is centered around transparency, collaboration, inclusivity, and community. By including open access, collaboration among diverse perspectives… encompasses a more broad set of values and principles derived from open source software development. Open source is centered around transparency, collaboration, inclusivity, and community. By including open access, collaboration among diverse perspectives, and rapid prototyping, the very iterative open source approach produces an optimized product generated by communities.

Yes, a glossary of OpenTEAM terms and definitions can be found here.

In biology, regeneration is the process of renewal, restoration, and growth that makes cells, organisms, and ecosystems resilient to natural fluctuations or events that cause disturbance or damage. RegenerativeIn biology, regeneration is the process of renewal, restoration, and growth that makes cells, organisms, and ecosystems resilient to natural fluctuations or events that cause disturbance or damage. Regenerative agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices that incr… agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices that increases biodiversity, enriches soils, improves watersheds, and enhances ecosystem services. Regenerative farming and grazing practices rebuild organic matter and restore degraded soil to create a more resilient agricultural system.

Soil health is an assessment of how well soil performs all of its functions now and how those functions are being preserved for future use. Soil health cannot be determined by measuring only crop yield, water quality, or any other single outcome but is evaluated through indicators.

Indicators are measurable properties of soil or plants that provide clues about how well the soil can function. Indicators can be physical, chemical, and biological properties, processes, or characteristics of soils. They can also be morphological or visual features of plants.

Adaptive ManagementAdaptive Management is a process of continual improvement by adjusting “action” based on high frequency observations and data driven analysis rather than by expert opinion, best practice recipe or prescription.  It requires a high level of system understanding and observatio… More is a process of continual improvement by adjusting “action” based on high frequency observations and data driven analysis rather than by expert opinion, best practice recipe or prescription.  It requires a high level of system understanding and observation, analysis and communications feedback.

A model for the functionings of an agricultural system, with all inputs and outputs. An ecosystem may be as small as a set of microbial interactions that take place on the surface of roots, or as large as the globe. An agroecosystem may be at the level of the individual plant-soil-microorganism system, at the level of crops or herds of domesticated animals, at the level of farms or agricultural landscapes, or at the level of entire agricultural economies.

Ecosystem services are the many and varied benefits that humans freely gain from the natural environment and from properly-functioning ecosystems such as air and water quality, habitat, aesthetics and recreation. A marketplace quantifies and creates markets based on the change over time in those services.